Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 5 2017/18
Welcome to Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 5. This is only my second Captain Picks article but in my last article 4 out of my 7 picks either scored, assisted or both; so hopefully I can continue this trend with my picks below.
Last weekend we saw some new players settling into their teams and their new surroundings in the first gameweek after the International Break and the closing of the transfer window. The likes of Renato Sanches, Zappacosta and Krychowiak all featured for the first time in the Premier League. Hopefully with all the business now done and the new players settling into their teams it will allow us, as fantasy managers, to see the real picture and begin to get a feel of how the landscape lies. Case in point GroS and the rest of the Brighton team, not a single goal scored in 3 games and as soon as I decide to bench him, Brighton score 3 with the German involved in all (but I’m not bitter I swear!!).
Let’s move onto the players who will hopefully bag some massive numbers for us this weekend. Here are my 5 picks, in reverse order, for that invaluable Captain armband this week –
5. Mohamed Salah vs Burnley
Last week Rosco tipped Firmino as one of his choices as Liverpool would be “full of confidence” after the 4-0 demolition of Arsenal…. I blame him for the loss against City, he put a curse on them! After the 5-0 loss to City, Liverpool showed just why they desired VVD so much, not just because he plays for Southampton but also because Klavan and Matip are as useful as a knitted condom. Defence is not Liverpool’s strong suit but attack is and a key part of that is Mo Salah. While writing this I do not know the outcome of Liverpool’s fixture against Sevilla and Salah was replaced at half time against City with Sevilla in mind. Whether this means he is benched against Burnley and brought on for a cameo I don’t know but with Mane out Liverpool need all the speed they can get so I would play him.
Salah could be the focal point with Mane out and was looking very lively against City before the red card and his subsequent substitution. In the 45 minutes he did manage, he really should have added to the 2 goals and 2 assists he already has this season but did not have the finishing touch or final bit of composure. One upside to a sad injury to Heaton (may he get well soon) is that 25-year-old Nick Pope is going to be in goal and Liverpool could capitalise on this by scoring like they did against Arsenal and if so then I expect Salah to be amongst the points this weekend.
4. Chris Wood vs Liverpool
This may be a weird one as I am placing him ahead of Salah but the Burnley new boy could really hurt Liverpool. As we all know Liverpool aren’t exactly the masters of defending, especially set pieces!! This is where I can see Brady and Wood succeeding the most. Wood has scored 79 goals in his career and a lot of them are headers and the tall physical Kiwi could really trouble the Liverpool defence at set pieces and even just when holding them off and turning towards goal. Wood has scored in the two games he has played in so far since signing for Burnley and could extend that run here against a poor defence. He could be a nice differential for those who have him.
3. Lukaku vs Everton
I debated putting Lukaku higher in this list but never once did I debate not including him. Lukaku has been on fire this season so far, as have United. They did stumble against Stoke but the Big Belgian still got on the score sheet as he has done in 3 out of the 4 games this season. Lukaku is welcoming his former employers Everton in this one and could be out to show how much they will miss him. With both teams having a former player returning, Lukaku will want to outshine the man who can’t keep it in his trousers, so I wouldn’t be too quick in taking the armband off the boy.
Lukaku is quickly becoming a perma captain this season and that is mainly due to the fact he is averaging a goal a game so a lot of people are leaving the armband on him and just letting the lad do his thing. If he keeps getting 6 points doubled in every game why not but sometimes people like a bit of change so here are some more choices.
2. KDB/Aguero vs Watford
This one is risky as Pep could screw us over with rotation but I feel KDB and Aguero are safe enough. KDB could be the most controversial pick today as he has done nothing apart from the Liverpool game but I think that performance could be the boost he needed to kick on. As we know KDB is a brilliant player and usually pulls the strings for the Sky Blues which is exactly what happened on Saturday at the Etihad. KDB showed all his doubters that he can turn up when he wants to. With Watford keeping 3 consecutive clean sheets people might shy away from capping a City player but those clean sheets came against Bournemouth, Brighton and Southampton who aren’t the greatest sides and shouldn’t really make City that worried.
The other key man for City is Sergio Aguero, the little Argentinian has always been a brilliant captain choice for FPL managers and with Jesus up top partnering him I can only see more goals being added to his tally. Aguero has 2 goals and an assist this season and with fixtures turning in his favour a bit he could once again become a great captain choice for this game and beyond.
1. Harry Kane vs Swansea
No need to check your calendars because Harry Kane has scored which means it’s no longer August!! Since September 1st HuriKane Harry has come storming in with 4 goals, a brace for both club and country and against a Swansea side that did not look very good against Newcastle, Spurs and Kane should have too much for them. He may have dropped in price due to a lot of impatient people but if he continues this form Kane’s price will rise again and all those who stuck with him through August can laugh at all those scrambling to bring in the Londoner. Eriksen, Alli and Davies have been getting all the points for Spurs so far but with Kane having turned the page of his calendar it shouldn’t be long before his name is top of the Spurs points sheet. He will most definitely be my captain choice this weekend and I hope he can reward me and all of us!
Thanks for reading Fantasy Football Captain Picks Gameweek 5
This article was written by Matt.
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Gameweek Tracker GW5-11
Trending now Pogba…
Ideally I would love Eriksen but price is an issue. 0 itb and only have one FT. The options at 8.1 doesn’t look interesting and might need a hit. Any suggestions?
Coys, thats unlucky as your time looked nice and settled. I dont see where you can take a hit tho, as i fancy all of your other players as well so only option is to look 8.1 and below. so i would consider David Silva or Gross actually
Thanks Migs. D Silva would be an option if I don’t want to take a hit but don’t feel entirely comfortable with another pep player due to the tinkering. As Atsu is uncertain and at some point Stephen and Hegazi could be a risk as well.
Do you still have your wildcard? If you do, go gross then as he has two nice fixtures coming up. If Atsu doesnt play then at least you have carroll but i still wouldnt take a hit
Yeah still have my WC but would rather use it later. Can’t help but feeling annoyed when I hear or see Gross mentioned. Sold him last week for a hit lol
Many thanks for this, Matt! You’re filling in my shoes nicely :p
I’m looking to make 3 transfers this week as I need to but Kane, ship Mane, and ship one of my 3 Spurs players to get Kane. Either Jesus or Lukaku needs to go for Kane; my plan was to sell Lukaku and get in Pogba and Salah, but with Pogba out I’m not confident about having Miki as my sole attacking player from United. However, Jesus has better fixtures, is cheaper, and could be a good differential to Lukaku.
If I do Lukaku, Alli, and Mane -> Kane, Salah, and Jese, I can get Morata in for Chicharito by downgrading either Hegazi (Wimmer) or Milivojevic (4.5 mid).
Any advice on my team guys? Jese has looked good I think but his fixtures are not nice just yet…
Btw, 2 FTs, 0.0 itb
IMO you’re losing 220+200+180 for 220+180+120. (Season Points)
Mane -> Salah makes more sense to me, then hold. Have you used your WC yet? That may change things. Just not a fan of a Salah, Mikhi, Jese midfield – Your two main players will be rotated and Jese plays for Stoke. Especially as your defence has Stephens, Trippier, Hegazi and eventually Davies who may all lose their places – Stephens, Hegazi and Trippier maybe quite soon/this weekend.
Don’t think sacrificing it all to get Kane is worth it atm, especially as you have Alli.
Just my 2 cents.
Those appoints projections are really interesting but only really apply if you plan on keeping those players for the whole season.The trick is to hop on and off some players when they have poor fixtures or poor form or an alternative player is offering better value.Plus you may only be keeping some players up untill your wildcard that have good fixtures between now and then.
*points
Lukaku and Kane have very similar fixtures coming up (4/5 weeks) so as they’re both firing now, I expect similar points.
I expect Alli to outscore Salah over the next 4/5 weeks so wouldn’t want to drop him.
Obviously Salah will score more than Jese over the next 4-5 weeks.
Dropping Lukaku for Kane doesn’t make sense to me unless Kane has much better fixtures or Lukaku shows no form, both of which aren’t currently true.
+1, projections are all well and good but as we all know things change every week in FPL!
Hey Tekno, I think I’d lose Trippier to open up a Spurs’ slot before Alli since you have Davies as well. With Alli’s 3 match CL ban he’s gotta be nailed for league matches and Trippier’s spot may come under threat soon. Seems like Rose is a ways off and Davies is on fire, he should be safe for the forseeable future.
Cheers all, thank for the feedback.
Yeah I’m not sure about dropping Lukaku, but I rate Kane higher than any other forward in the game when firing. Those 7 shots per game are pretty insane, and higher than Lukaku’s 5, which again is higher than Jesus’ 3.3. It’s more Lukaku vs Jesus than Lukaku vs Kane in my mind.
Regarding Jese, take into consideration that the freed up funds would be used to get Morata. So it’s Jese & Morata vs Alli & Chicharito. But I had planned to bring these two in around GW 7-8 when their fixtures become better, so I don’t mind waiting with these transfers.
I could keep Alli and get a 5.0 defender in place of Trippier. My planned replacement for Trippier was Keane, but he is 5.5. I noticed that Jagielka is 5.0, but I’m not sure if he is nailed on.
Gelson scored yesterday right, for Sporting? Why is it still saying this? Barca game is match fucking day 2.
Solid article Matt many thanks. For me it’s got to be captain Kane.
Got 2FTs £0.8ITB. Any suggestions I can make guys? Been doing kinda decent up to this point so aiming higher.
I’m really keen on upgrading JWP but not willing to downgrade any of my strikers. What moves should I make?
My personal opinion would be JWP downgrade and one of your defenders to Cahill/Azpi, maybe Davies.
I know many people are against 433, and the moves may seem like a waste but they really should score 160+ points this year, especially looking at Azpi/Davies combinations with Kane and Morata, a goal and 4 assists between them which beats Mooy and JWP already.
Most will recommend Gross/Richarlison/Doucoure I think but I have a very different view of budget midfielders.
Hey Eagle, how’s it going? JWP’s minutes are obviously an issue and I think Hegazi and Stephens’ days are probably numbered, too. With that powerhouse front 3 you’re going to need to raise some funds someplace, so I’d consider dropping DDG down to one of Foster/Fab since Elliot has some very decent upcoming fixtures. Your call on where to spend that money, but it would allow you to reach Willian, Fabregas, Ramsey, etc for JWP if you wanted, or go with someone cheaper and have plenty of money to beef up defense. Jones at 5.1 is an easy move from Hegazi/Stephens also and gets you back United defense cover if you drop DDG.
Hey Red. Things going ok so far. Yeah i’m fully aware of Hegazi and Stephens so I will hold on to both until it is clear that they are being dropped. I was thinking of getting some cash from DDG and Kola enough to upgrade JWP to Siggy just in time for GW6 when Everton’s easy run begins. I will definitely consider Jones to keep United defensive coverage.
Can’t link my team so i’ll add it in below, £3m in the bank:
Forster (Elliot)
Alonso, Bellerin, Davies, Bertrand, Blind
Eriksen, Salah, Pogba, Willian (Carroll)
Lukaku (4.5’s who don’t matter)
Which to do? A is my plan at the moment:
a) Willian and Pogba -> Alli + Mikhi
b) Willian and Pogba -> Alli + Silva
c) Pogba to Alli, keep Willian for one more week
d) Anything else?
Obviously Pogba is out injured, but Willian and Blind may not get the gametime so I don’t want to risk having 10 players.
Cheers guys
Different type of team Mr. Bean! How is the lack of forwards working out for you so far?
Of your options I slightly favour b
30k ish rank so not too bad at all, all my defenders I’ve had have performed and my strong midfield is doing well. I plan on my defence eventually being Alonso, Azpi, Walker, Baines, Davies but currently about 0.2m short of my plan. Will see how long I can hold out on only one striker but why change what isn’t broke at the moment?
Not sold on Silva with gametime and rotation but its definitely an option, not much at that 8-8.5 level, maybe Siggy when Evertons fixtures turn GW6.
Wasn’t Willian only benched because he returned back late from International duty?
I feel Hazard and Pedro are the preferred attacking 2 – Willian was given the full 90 to rest both of the former.
He even got replaced by Bakayoko last week?! Will monitor but he’s probably going – great on the pitch but hasn’t translated.
Pogba to Alli,Willian to a 4.5m mid and upgrade a 4.5m forward to Morata ? I know you are playing the game a different way but I’d be happier with 2 big hitter strikers with the big choice that there is that are doing the business.
This is something I have considered doing post WC, purely because it required a progressive transfer for a -4 which I struggle to justify. Very happy to move to 5-3-2 if necessary, my way of playing is just avoiding budget midfielders and strikers (unless they look really good).
It limits my planned defensive upgrades (had planned a straight Lukaku -> Morata swap in GW8 and then the defence I mentioned above) but haven’t looked too far into what options I have with Morata and Lukaku. Will give it some more consideration later today.
Thanks!
People are binning Pogba for Mkhi in their droves. That’s tonight’s transfer sorted.